


All Shook Up

by emilyk



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-22
Updated: 2015-02-22
Packaged: 2018-03-14 12:31:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3410729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emilyk/pseuds/emilyk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bucky, in a moment of spontaneity, adopts a puppy. Panicking, he runs into the nearest pet store and finds everything he needs including a hot blond babe named Steve who happens to own the store.</p><p>Pet Shop AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	All Shook Up

**Author's Note:**

> Wrote this for a friend and thought I'd share it with everyone, let me know what you think!

Bucky sat like a lazy lump on Natasha’s white and very expensive couch, his hair thrown up in a messy bun with a few shorter pieces falling loose and framing his face. He sighed heavily and Natasha rose a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at him and stared him down.

Bucky held her gaze for as long as possible but Natasha was undefeated in this game and Bucky was forced to give in. 

“What?” He asked her.

Natasha shrugged and looked back to her crossword puzzle.

“Nothing. It’s just that for the past few months you’ve been lying on my couch sighing and eating all my food.”

Bucky snorts.

“As if my eating your leftover Chinese food was a real loss. Maybe if you actually had any food here that statement would be true.”

Natasha narrowed her eyes at him and put her crossword puzzle down on the coffee table. Bucky braced for the worst.

“My point is, James, you need to get out more often, make some friends. You’re lonely.”

Bucky rolled his eyes and turned the volume of the TV up.

Natasha stood up and tried grabbing the remote from his hands and Bucky swatted her hand away. Natasha scowled and grabbed Bucky by the ear, pulling hard.

“Ow!” Bucky shouted, pushing her off and thrusting the remote in her hand.

Natasha smiled smugly and promptly turned the TV off while Bucky rubbed at his sore ear.

 

“Jesus, Nat, you’d think you were the one with the bionic arm.” Bucky complained.

“I’ve been letting you mope around for a while now because I knew you needed time after your break-up but this is ridiculous James! You are way too cute to be sitting in my apartment looking like a homeless person and watching Top Chef re-runs. You need to get out and make some new friends.”

Bucky now narrowed his eyes at her and gave her an exasperated look.

“Who are you to judge, Nat, I’m your only friend.” Bucky pointed out.

Natasha rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to speak before Bucky cut her off.

“And Clint doesn’t count.”

Natasha smirked.

“He does count, we’re engaged, and I do have friends, smart-ass.” Natasha began ticking off her fingers. “Maria and I do yoga together twice a week, Pepper and I get drinks on Wednesdays and sometimes Tony comes. Thor spots me at the gym on Saturday mornings, and Peggy and I go shopping together, so there you go! A well-rounded social life!”

Bucky stared at her open-mouthed and thought about all the times Nat had invited him out and all the times he turned her down. He had to admit, he did know far too much about Top Chef.

When Bucky was silent Natasha shot him another smug smile and then her face melted into a fond smile, something Bucky only saw on special occasions. 

“Listen, James, you know I love you, but I want you to be happy.”

Bucky opened his mouth to protest and Natasha held her hand up and he paused.

“I’m serious, James. You’ve got to move on.”

Bucky decided to hold his tongue and just nod his head patiently, Natasha gave him one last smile and handed him the remote. Bucky turned the TV back on as Nat crawled back onto her chaise and her cat Widow climbed up onto her lap and started snoozing.

Bucky sulked.

~~  
Steve was working in the pet store he had inherited from his mom and dad when they had died. The Little Shop of Collars sold an assortment of pet foods, collars, toys, and treats. The only thing you couldn’t get at Little Shop was an actual pet. Steve worked there every day except for Sundays and Mondays, in the evenings he had a kid named Peter Parker working there part time from 3-5 and 12-5 on the weekends.

Steve was working today, he was sitting on a wooden stool behind the counter when he heard the little door above the shop’s door jingle and looked up from the counter where he was doodling what little city scape he could see from his perch. In walked the most beautiful man he had ever seen with long brunette hair pulled back from his face and slight stubble covering his jaw.

Steve dropped his pen.

After Steve bent down and picked it up the angel in the doorway had disappeared. Steve craned his neck trying to see down the aisles but to no avail.

Steve pondered whether or not he should go up and talk to him or just sit and wait for the man to come to him. If Sam were here right now he’d tell Steve to go for it; Sam’s always telling Steve to go for it, the only problem is Steve never does, but it’s not entirely his fault. Steve didn’t see drop dead gorgeous men like the man that just walked into his store all the time. Besides what does Sam know, Steve set up Sam with Peggy three years ago and they’ve been dating ever since, he didn’t have to go for anything! Steve had done all the work there.

Steve let out of whoosh of air and paced behind the counter for a little bit, finally deciding to just wait for the man to check out, who knows maybe he was a total asshole or even straight. He stood firmly in his place until he heard something fall and what sounded like a string of Russian curse words. Maybe it was time to act.

Steve poked his head down the dog food aisle and saw the gorgeous guy lifting up a large bag of dog food off his foot and trying to get it back onto the top shelf it fell from.

Steve cleared his throat.

The man looked his way and almost dropped the bag, Steve smiled brightly at him.

“Can I help you with something?” He asked cheerfully.

The man gave him a nervous smile that made Steve’s heart flutter, which he pointedly ignored.

“Um…okay…so I did something a little crazy.” The man began, blushing the tiniest bit. He managed to get the bag back on the shelf and turned to face Steve, his hands shoving in his pockets.

“You adopted a dog?” Steve guessed, as he was standing in a pet store.

The angel laughed and ran a shiny metal hand through his hair, Steve’s eyes were drawn to the arm before quickly scanning back up to his face.

“I adopted a dog.” He confirmed, chuckling nervously, he ran a hand over his face. “Ugh, Nat is gonna kill me...”

Steve frowned.

“That your girlfriend?” He asked not so subtly.

The angel gave him a funny look before bursting out in laughter.

“No way, man, even if I was straight Nat’s like a sister to me.” 

“Oh.” Steve said, blushing a little, his mouth breaking out in a boyish grin.

The angel bit his lip and Steve tried not to shuffle his feet as the guy swept his stormy blue eyes over Steve’s body.

“You work here?” He asked, his eyes scanning back to meet Steve’s.

“Yeah, well, I own the store.” He answered, reaching his hand up to rub over the back of his neck shyly.

Normally Steve had some type of cool when it came to talking to attractive people, but this guy was on a whole other level and all Steve really wanted to do was plant a big, wet one on those sinfully plump lips. What the hell was he thinking, this was a customer for crying out loud, he can’t just go around imagining making out with his shoppers, it wasn’t right.

The angel’s face lit up and looked at Steve as if he just said he could walk on water.

“Really? I need your help!”

Steve stepped closer to him, “What can I help you with?” He asked.

“I don’t know anything about dogs.” The guy admitted guiltily, “I mean I shouldn’t even have a dog! But Nat kept going on about how I was gonna die alone or whatever and then today I passed by a pet store and saw this little golden retriever and he was just sittin there, starin at me from inside a crate! You shoulda seen it, like this little dog was really givin me the works, all sweet big blue eyes! And boy am I a sucker for blue eyes, so I marched in there and paid for the little bastard and now I have a dog!”

Steve stared at him open-mouthed as he babbled on, filing away that fact about him liking blue eyes, and waited for him to finish.

The man blushed when he realized he’d been going on about this dog and not getting to the root of the actual problem. He cleared his throat.

“So, basically, I don’t know what kind of food to get or nothin’. Can you help me?”

Steve laughed good-naturedly and gave him his most charming smile, the one that made women swoon and children stop crying. Apparently it had effect on the angel because he kept staring at Steve, eyes lingering on his mouth.

Steve proceeded to help him pick out the right kind of dog food for his new puppy as well as a new collar and leash. He even suggested the guy pick out a few toys and treats for him.

“So where is the little guy?” Steve asked as the guy mulled over the toy options.

The guy looked up at him and grimaced.

“I called Nat’s fiancé to dog-sit as I ran out for food, I had to beg him not to call Nat, but she probably already knows. She’s got a sixth sense that way.”

Steve nodded even though he wasn’t looking at him, he shoved his hands in the pockets of his khakis.

“I know what you mean, I gotta girl like that too.” Steve said without thinking.

The guy looked at him then and Steve saw disappointment flash in his eyes before he smiled shortly at him.

Steve panicked.

“I mean not my girl! Well I mean she was until we broke up, that is. We’re still friends though, she keeps trying to set me up with this guy a friend of hers knows, but blind dates aren’t really my kind of thing, you know?”

The angel’s ears perk up at the word guy and then he gives Steve the most charming smile he’s ever seen. Honestly there’s no way this doesn’t work on everybody and the guy probably knows this. Steve swallows, he hopes it wasn’t audible.

“I know what you mean.” The guy says, smiling brightly, “Nat keeps trying to do the same thing.”

Steve steps closer to the guy, “Yeah?” 

The guy nods before biting his lip and then ducking his head and Steve just stares at him, his eyes fixated on perfect pink lips.

“I think I’ll go with the squeaking bone.” The guy suddenly declares.

Steve goes to reach for it off the shelf and the guy does the exact same, their hands touch and Steve feels a current of electricity run from the tips of his fingers down to the ends of his toes. They lock eyes and Steve pulls his hand away, blushing. The other man is grinning.

“Thanks for all you help, you really saved me.” He told Steve, placing the dog toy in the small basket he was carrying along with all his other items.

Steve shrugs and beams at him.

“It’s no problem, I mean it’s not every day insanely cute guys walk in here, so helping you was no skin off my back.” Steve answers boldly, not meeting the guy’s eyes.

When he finally looks up, the guy is standing closer to him and Steve feels antsy, his whole body on high alert.

“Insanely cute guy, huh?” He asks, still grinning wide at Steve.

“That’s what I said.” Steve replies, staring the guy down.

The other guy doesn’t look away for what feels like eternity, until his eyes drift down the slightest bit to stare openly at Steve’s mouth. Steve’s heart is beating rapidly in his chest and his brain is asking him what the hell is going on, but the guy is leaning in closer, and yes Steve is so letting this happen.

The guy’s lips are just a hair away from his when the shop door flings open and Steve’s employee, Peter, stomps in, backpack slung over his back.

Steve jumps back at the sound, feeling like he’s just been caught stealing.

“Hey, Steve! Where are ya? I’m actually on time today!” Peter calls out, plopping his backpack on the floor and making his way behind the counter.

Steve curses Peter’s unusual punctuality and looks back to the guy who’s blushing fiercely and running a hand through his hair. He gives one last grin.

“Thanks…” The guy strains to read his name tag.

“Steve.” Steve clarifies, smiling and blushing.

“Bucky.” The guy says. “I’ll see you around, Stevie.”

“I hope so.” Steve mutters as the angel- no, Bucky, walks away and if Steve checks out his ass well he’s only human.

~~

It had been three weeks since Bucky had been to the pet store and he’d been mentally kicking himself for not getting the cute owner- Steve’s number. He’s also been so busy taking care of Sarge, his newly potty-trained golden retriever, he hadn’t had time to make his way back to the store so that he could accidentally bump into Steve. Which was so ridiculous, he hardly knew the guy, but he was so going to just make out with him in the middle of the store, until that kid had walked in. He was way out of his depth.

Bucky sighed as he styled his hair. He had finally let Nat talk him into a blind date with someone a friend of hers knew. He had only said yes so that Nat would get off his back about it, but he knew he would be a total useless date considering he had his head filled with thoughts of a certain blond with muscles as big as his head and an ass that wouldn’t quit.

He arrived at the restaurant right on the dot, letting out a deep breath as he opened the glass door and mentally prepared himself for the worst date in history. Natasha had set the reservation under her name, so the hostess knew exactly where to take him. Bucky scanned the crowd looking for his potential date when then they turned the corner and she led him to a secluded booth meant for couples. He couldn’t see who was sitting in it, Bucky grimaced.

The hostess held out her arms, presenting the booth to him, Bucky gave her a tight smile and slid into the booth, when he looked up he nearly choked.

The guy across from him did choke, however, on the water he was drinking as he looked up at Bucky with wide, surprised eyes.

“Bucky?” Steve asked incredulously.

Bucky just stared at him for a long moment before busting out in a fit of laughter. Steve joined him and they laughed good and long and they laughed throughout the rest of the evening, talking and trading stories, Steve telling Bucky how his parents had died and Bucky telling Steve how he lost his arm in a car accident, and marveling at the fact that they could have been having this exact date months ago if they hadn’t been so stubborn. And later when Steve pinned him against the door of his apartment and kissed him breathless Bucky made a mental note to buy Natasha a hundred roses.

A year after their first date Sarge seemed to be more excited that Steve had moved in than Bucky and when Bucky voiced this opinion Steve pressed Bucky into the mattress and showed him just how exciting living with him could be.


End file.
